Photo by Juliana Barquero on Unsplash
Every February, Japanese temples and shrines fill with shouting crowds, flying roasted soybeans, and grown adults in oni (demon) masks getting pelted by children. This is Setsubun, one of the few Japanese festivals where tourists aren’t just welcome to watch — they’re welcome to throw. If you’re in Japan in early February, it’s one of the easiest, cheapest, and most memorable cultural events to work into your itinerary.
What Is Setsubun, and When Is It?
Setsubun (節分) literally means “seasonal division.” In the old lunar calendar, it marked the last day of winter, the day before risshun (the start of spring). The date is calculated astronomically each year, so it isn’t always fixed — it falls on February 3 in most years, but it shifted to February 2 in 2021 and 2025 due to how the solar calendar lines up with the equinox calculations. If your trip is scheduled around this time, check a Japanese calendar (or search “setsubun” plus the year) a few weeks out to confirm the exact date, since temple event schedules are built around it.
The core belief is simple: the turn of the season is when evil spirits (oni) slip through the cracks between worlds. Throwing beans at them, loudly, drives them out and invites good fortune in for the year ahead.
Mamemaki: How the Bean-Throwing Ritual Works
The main event is called mamemaki (豆まき) — literally “bean scattering.” Someone dresses as an oni, usually in a red, blue, or black mask, and everyone else throws roasted soybeans (fukumame, “lucky beans”) at them while shouting “Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!” (“Demons out, luck in!”). Afterward, tradition says you should eat one roasted soybean for each year of your age, plus one extra for good luck in the coming year.
At home, this is a family activity — one parent puts on a mask, the kids pelt them with beans, then everyone eats their count of soybeans. Convenience stores and supermarkets sell small bags of fukumame for around ¥100–¥300 in the weeks before the festival, often bundled with a paper oni mask. If you’re staying in an apartment or guesthouse with a kitchen, picking up a bag at a local supermarket or a discount chain like the one covered in our guide to grocery shopping in Japan is a fun, low-effort way to try the ritual yourself.
At temples and shrines, mamemaki becomes a public spectacle: priests, monks, celebrities, sumo wrestlers, and local “toshi otoko/toshi onna” (people born in that year’s zodiac sign, considered especially lucky) throw handfuls of beans — and sometimes wrapped sweets or coins — off a stage into a crowd that scrambles to catch them. Watching is free at nearly every venue; catching a bean is the whole game.
Ehomaki: The Lucky Direction Sushi Roll
The other Setsubun custom you’ll see everywhere, especially in convenience stores and supermarkets, is ehomaki (恵方巻き) — a thick, uncut sushi roll eaten in complete silence while facing that year’s designated “lucky direction,” which is determined by the zodiac calendar and changes annually. You’re supposed to eat the whole roll without stopping to talk, making a wish as you go.
Convenience stores like 7-Eleven, Lawson, and FamilyMart start taking pre-orders for ehomaki in mid-January, with basic rolls running ¥500–¥900 and deluxe versions with premium seafood or wagyu going for ¥1,500–¥3,000. Department store basement food halls (depachika) sell even more elaborate versions, and some sushi restaurants offer a Setsubun ehomaki course for ¥3,000–¥6,000 if you want the full sit-down experience rather than a grab-and-go roll.
Best Temples and Shrines to Join In
If you want more than a convenience-store bean bag, head to one of the temples or shrines that hold large public mamemaki ceremonies on Setsubun:
- Sensoji (Asakusa, Tokyo) — Tokyo’s most famous temple holds one of its biggest annual crowds for Setsubun. Uniquely, the chant here drops “oni wa soto” entirely and only shouts “fuku wa uchi,” based on the belief that Kannon’s compassion means no being is cast out. 5 minutes on foot from Asakusa Station (Ginza Line, Asakusa Line, or Tobu Skytree Line).
- Naritasan Shinshoji (Narita) — Famous for celebrity guests and sumo wrestlers throwing beans from a huge stage; one of the largest Setsubun events in the Kanto region. About 10 minutes on foot from Narita Station, making it an easy stop if you have a layover near the airport. Tickets for a numbered raffle bag of beans (with a chance at prizes) typically cost around ¥1,000.
- Zojoji (Tokyo, near Tokyo Tower) — Draws sumo wrestlers and public figures for its bean-throwing stage, with Tokyo Tower as a backdrop.
- Yasaka Shrine (Gion, Kyoto) — Held over February 2–3, with maiko and geiko from Kyoto’s different geisha districts performing dances before the bean throwing. A short walk from Gion-Shijo Station or a bus ride from Kyoto Station.
- Rozan-ji (Kyoto) — Less crowded but arguably more theatrical: three demons in red, blue, and black — representing greed, anger, and foolishness — perform the Oni Odori demon dance while priests chant sutras to drive them out, followed by mamemaki. Near Kyoto Imperial Palace, about 15 minutes on foot from Marutamachi Station.
- Ikegami Honmonji (Tokyo) — A large temple in southern Tokyo that also draws celebrity guests; reachable via Ikegami Station on the Tokyu Ikegami Line.
If you’re building a temple-hopping day in Kyoto — Yasaka Shrine in the morning, Rozan-ji in the afternoon — a rental bike can save a lot of walking between sites; see our guide to city bike rentals in Kyoto and Tokyo for stations and pricing.
Getting There and Practical Tips
Main ceremonies usually run in the early-to-mid afternoon, often between 1:00 and 3:00pm, though smaller mamemaki sessions can happen multiple times through the day at bigger temples. Arrive at least 30–45 minutes early for popular ones like Sensoji or Naritasan — the areas directly in front of the stage fill up fast, and you want to be within throwing range to actually catch anything. Bring a bag or pocket you can open quickly; beans (and sometimes wrapped candy) come down in handfuls and it’s a genuine scramble.
Entry to watch is free everywhere on this list. Some temples sell a separate raffle-ticket bag of beans for around ¥500–¥1,000, which is optional but gives you a souvenir and a shot at a prize drawing. Dress warmly — early February is one of the coldest stretches of the Japanese winter, and you’ll likely be standing outside for a while.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Assuming the date is always February 3. It moves in some years — double-check before you build your schedule around it.
- Showing up right at the ceremony’s stated start time. By then the good viewing spots are already taken; early arrival matters more than punctuality here.
- Trying to keep beans thrown at temple ceremonies as souvenirs. They’re food, meant to be eaten (or left where they fall) — pack the paper oni masks or a bag of unopened fukumame instead if you want something to take home.
- Skipping smaller neighborhood shrines. Sensoji and Naritasan are spectacular but packed elbow-to-elbow; a local shrine’s mamemaki is far more relaxed and often just as fun to watch up close.
Budget, Mid-Range, and Splurge Ways to Celebrate
Budget: Buy a ¥100–¥300 bag of fukumame at a supermarket or convenience store, watch a free neighborhood shrine ceremony, and eat a ¥500–¥900 convenience-store ehomaki facing the year’s lucky direction.
Mid-range: Buy a ¥500–¥1,000 raffle bean bag at a major temple like Naritasan or Zojoji, and pick up a ¥1,500–¥3,000 deluxe ehomaki from a depachika food hall afterward.
Splurge: Book a sit-down ehomaki course (¥3,000–¥6,000) at a sushi restaurant, then catch the Yasaka Shrine geiko performances or Rozan-ji’s Oni Odori dance for a more elaborate, ritual-heavy version of the day.
If you pick up an oni mask, a wrapped bag of fukumame, or a Setsubun-themed tenugui as a keepsake — many temple stalls sell seasonal ones, and our guide to tenugui covers how they’re traditionally used — and you’re near the end of your trip, check our guide to shipping souvenirs home from Japan for the cheapest way to get bulkier finds back without them taking up suitcase space.